The poem Continue was written by Maya Angelou

The poem offers words of hope and perseverance… a message of empowerment and hope, of courage and generosity, a call to action and an answer to the question all of us ask ourselves about our ability to make a difference in our own lives and in the lives of others.

On the day of your birth
The Creator filled countless storehouses and stockings
with rich ointment, luscious tapestries,
and antique coins of incredible value,
jewels worthy of a queen’s dowry.
They were set aside for your use
Alone

Armed with faith and hope
And without knowing of the wealth which awaited
You broke through dense walls of poverty
And loosed the chained of ignorance which
threatened to cripple you so that you could walk
A free woman into a world which needed you.

My wish for you is that you continue.
To be who and how you are…
To astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness.

Continue to let your eloquence elevate people to heights they had only imagined.
Continue to remind people that each is as good as the other and that no one is beneath nor above you.
Continue to remember your own young years and look with favor upon the lost, least and lonely.
Continue to take the hand of the despised and diseased and walk with them proudly in the high street.

Some might see you and be encouraged to do likewise.

Continue to plant a kiss of concern on the cheek of the sick and the aged and infirm and count that action as natural and to be expected.
Continue to let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer
and let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.
Continue to spare no vision which comes to enlarge your range and increase your spirit.

My wish for you is that you to continue.
Continue to dare to love deeply and risk everything for the good thing.
Continue to float in the sea of infinite substance which set aside riches for you before you had a name.
Continue and by doing so, you and all your dreams will be able to continue…

Eternally.